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Designed for easy day-to-day living, the O’Briens’ house is accessible, low maintenance, and energy efficient. 1 2 3 4 Going up? An elevator makes all three floors of the O’Briens’ house accessible if someday they can’t climb stairs 1. For now, the elevator comes in handy as a dumbwaiter when they arrive home with cumbersome items. In the laundry/ sewing room 2, an energy-efficient, frontloading washer and dryer are raised off the floor so that no one has to bend over to load or unload laundry. For the dogloving homeowners, the pantry doubles as a dog room with an exterior pet door and rollout food bins 3. A fencedin backyard lets the dogs come and go as they please. Open floor plans 4 not only complement today’s lifestyle, but with wide hallways and door openings they’re also a natural fit with accessible design. In the master bath 5, the shower is outfitted with a bench and a handheld faucet. The whirlpool tub’s surround is low and wide enough to sit on and swing your legs into the bath. Photos 1–5 taken at C, D, E, F, and G, respectively, on floor plan, p. 91. 92 FINE HOMEBUILDING 5 house with an open floor plan (p. 91). As the footprint shrank and the house grew taller, the O’Briens realized they would need an elevator to improve accessibility. “We don’t need the elevator now,” Sharon says, “but it does come in handy as a dumbwaiter.” All the hallways and doorways in the O’Briens’ house are wide enough for easy wheelchair and walker access (4 ft. and 3 ft., respectively), and the master bathroom can accommodate people with limited mobility. A walk-in shower includes a comfortable bench and a handheld showerhead, and the whirl- pool bath has a wide surround where you can sit down to swing your legs into the tub. While there might be no easy way to get into the Japanese soaking tub in the bathroom that Carol Crandall designed for her mother’s house, it is one of the few aspects of the room that isn’t planned for accessibility (photo p. 95). “She’s a nimble 80-year-old woman,” Carol says, “and she wanted a soaking tub to use now.” The bathroom also includes a wall-hung toilet that allows the seat to be anywhere from 17 in. to 19 in. above the floor for maximum comfort. The open area beneath the Photos this page: Robert O’Brien (#3); all others, Brian Pontolilo. Photos facing page: Kevin Beswick, 2006.